Bitcoin surges to $108,000 as top US and Chinese officials meet to discuss tariffs
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will meet with top Chinese officials in London this week.
Bitcoin leapt to $108,000 on Monday, after hovering near $105,000 for most of the weekend, as top U.S and Chinese officials get ready to meet in London this week in the hopes of salvaging a fraying trade deal.
Bitcoin gained 2% on Monday, according to Binance, briefly touching $108,900 before falling slightly. The bump comes as investors express optimism about the potential for a resolution of trade disputes between the U.S. and one of its largest trading partners. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and China’s vice premier for economic policy He Lifeng will lead their respective delegations in negotiations that are expected to begin Monday and continue into Tuesday, according to the New York Times.
This week’s talks are part of President Donald Trump’s ongoing campaign to force U.S. trading partners to concede to various demands by threatening to impose hefty tariffs on foreign imports. After Trump announced a sweeping tariff policy in April that would affect nearly all U.S. trading partners, the president authorized a 90-day pause to allow time for negotiations.
However, the pause did not include tariffs on China, which were raised to 145%. The policy triggered retaliatory levies from China and led many investors to flee American markets, fearing the consequences of a potential trade war. Bitcoin fell to a yearly low of $75,000 as tensions between the nations escalated.
After a summit in Geneva last month, Trump reversed course and announced on May 12 that the U.S. and China had reached an agreement in which the two nations would temporarily lower their tariffs and hold additional talks to reduce tensions. Bitcoin surged to an all-time high of $111,000 on May 22, following news of the deal.
But the truce did not last long. Trump accused China of reneging on the deal over a dispute about Chinese exports of rare earth magnets. Trump wrote on Truth Social on May 30: “China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US. So much for being Mr. NICE GUY!”
In an effort to salvage the fraying trade deal, Trump and Xi talked over the phone for the first time in months last week. Following the 90-minute call, Trump announced that top officials from both countries would meet in London this week to resume negotiations.
Other factors that may be contributing to Bitcoin’s price surge are an increase in crypto-related IPOs. Last week, stablecoin giant Circle went public on the New York Stock Exchange and saw its shares pop over 168%, jumping from $31 to $69 within the first day of trading. Gemini, a crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, also filed for an IPO on Friday, in another example of the crypto industry becoming more intertwined with traditional finance.
“While the IPO bump is likely short-term excitement, the long-term institutional positioning leads us to be bullish about Bitcoin’s continued performance in 2025,” David Siemer, CEO of crypto asset management company Wave Digital Assets, told Fortune.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
